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The Best Banana Bread is so easy and the best way to use up overripe bananas!
Just what you’ve been looking for! Better than anything store-bought, this buttery, easy banana bread recipe is fluffy, soft, and moist, and it smells AMAZING while baking!
The best slice to go with your morning coffee.
Banana Bread
Who says you have to get rid of your ripe bananas? Make some quick bread instead!
The most incredible banana bread recipe you will ever try. Quick to make and delicious, this homemade banana bread bakes up right every single time.
Packing it with bananas, cinnamon, and brown sugar makes it SO moist!
This banana bread could not be simpler, using ingredients you already have in your kitchen pantry. Enjoy a slice for breakfast with a warm mug of hot cocoa, or save a slice for a morning or afternoon snack! I’m not joking when I’m telling you this is the best banana bread recipe that I’ve ever done.
If you want a lighter option, I also make a healthy banana bread that stays just as soft and fluffy.
Ingredients
- Overripe Bananas: Use bananas speckled with black spots. Yellow ones are too starchy and lack sweetness. Don’t replace these.
- Brown and White Sugar: Making banana bread with brown sugar adds caramel flavor and moisture from the molasses, while white sugar gives the top a light crust. I tried using all white sugar once, and it dried out fast. You can use all brown sugar, or make banana bread with honey, though I don’t recommend honey since it makes the center heavy.
- Melted Butter: Melted butter means no mixer is needed and gives a buttery flavor oil can’t match. Let it cool first so it doesn’t cook the eggs. You can swap in coconut or vegetable oil, though I recommend sticking to butter for flavor.
- Walnuts or Pecans: Folding in nuts turns this into the best banana nut bread recipe with great crunch. They are optional, so leave them out or swap in chocolate chips if you want it sweeter
Note: Please see the recipe card for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
Additions and Substitutions
- Warm Spices: Cinnamon is already in the batter, and a pinch of nutmeg goes really well with the banana flavor.
- Fruit and Chocolate: Fold in dark chocolate chunks or dried cranberries right before pouring it into the loaf pan.
- Sour Cream or Yogurt: Mixing a couple of spoons of sour cream or Greek yogurt into the mashed bananas makes the crumb even softer without changing the bake time.
Substitutions
- Flour: You can replace the all-purpose flour with a gluten-free baking blend, or swap half of it for whole wheat flour. Using all whole wheat flour makes the bread too heavy and dry, so I only do half and half.
- Butter: Swap the melted butter for melted coconut oil if you need it dairy-free. It keeps the texture just as soft.
- Eggs: If you run out of large eggs, two flax eggs will work to bind everything together. It won’t rise quite as high, though it still bakes through well.
- Sugar: Use dark brown sugar instead of light brown sugar if you want more molasses flavor and a deeper color.
How to Ripen Bananas Fast
If you only have yellow bananas on hand, place them unpeeled on a baking sheet and bake in a 300°F oven for 15 to 20 minutes until the peels turn completely black and shiny.
Let them cool down to room temperature, then scoop out the soft fruit and mash it up for your batter.
You can also use frozen bananas. Just let them thaw in a bowl on the counter for a couple of hours, drain off most of the excess liquid so the loaf doesn’t get soggy, and use the mashed bananas as normal.
How to Make Banana Bread
In this recipe, I use 2 different kinds of sugar to yield the best results: brown sugar and white sugar.
Making banana bread with brown sugar gives you a soft crumb that you will no doubt fall in love with. You only need to:
- WHISK together dry ingredients in a large bowl.
- MASH extra-ripe bananas well.
- ADD the wet ingredients and stir.
- FOLD in nuts.
- BAKE in the oven until a toothpick comes out clean!
You don’t need an electric mixer. Just two simple bowls, a wooden spoon or spatula, a fork, and a whisk. The fresh, warm smell wafting through your house is the hardest part: waiting for it to cool down a bit to serve with a little spread of butter.
Tips for the BEST Banana Bread
- Use extra-ripe bananas when the peels are covered in dark brown or black spots. These bananas are soft and full of naturally occurring sugars.
- Mash your bananas well with a fork. It’s fine if there are a few lumps in your mashed bananas.
- The batter should be thick and lumpy once all of the ingredients are mixed through. You may be tempted to add more liquid, but you won’t need it.
- Do not overmix the batter.
- Use a pale-colored loaf pan, as light grey or white is ideal. Dark or black pans tend to darken the bottom of cakes or loaves.
- Line your prepared loaf pan with parchment paper. Leave a 3-inch overhang to make it easy to pull and lift the loaf out of the pan.
- Let your loaf cool to room temperature on a wire rack, or enjoy a slice fresh out of the oven
The result? Incredibly fluffy banana bread, so tender and moist, packed with buttery richness and delicious depth of banana flavor.
What To Serve With
- Butter or Honey: Spread salted butter onto a warm slice fresh out of the oven, or drizzle it with a little honey. Just like you will eat a sweet cornbread… I promise you, you will love it.
- Cream Cheese or Nut Butter: Top a toasted slice with plain cream cheese, peanut butter, or almond butter for a filling breakfast.
- Yogurt and Berries: Serve a slice alongside a bowl of Greek yogurt and fresh berries to add calcium and vitamin C to your morning routine.
- Warm Drinks: Pair a slice of classic banana bread with your morning coffee, espresso, tea, or a warm mug of hot cocoa.
You can also use this banana bread mix to make some muffins. Just divide the batter into a greased or lined 12-cup muffin tin, filling each cup about three-quarters full, and bake at 350°F for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
You can also make a chocolate banana bread for a variation of this recipe.
FAQs
Use extra-ripe bananas with peels covered in dark brown or black spots. They mash easily and have the natural sugar needed for a sweet, soft loaf.
Overmixing the batter after adding the flour is the biggest mistake because it makes the loaf tough and rubbery. Just stir until the dry ingredients disappear.
Fold half a cup of chopped walnuts into the batter right before pouring it into your prepared loaf pan. It adds crunch to every slice without weighing down the crumb.
Yes, you can swap the melted butter for equal parts melted coconut oil or vegetable oil in this banana bread recipe. I still prefer butter because it gives the loaf a much better flavor.
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Best Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- ½ cup brown sugar packed
- ¼ cup white granulated sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tap ground cinnamon
- 1 ¼ cup large ripe bananas mashed (about 3 bananas)
- ⅓ cup melted butter slightly cooled
- 2 large eggs beaten
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
Instructions
- Combine flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl.
- Peel 3 large ripe bananas, mash them, and add the wet ingredients
- Lightly grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan and line it with parchment paper. Pour the mix and use a spoon to spread the batter evenly.
- Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 55 to 60 minutes.
Notes
How to Store Banana Bread
Seal the loaf or slices with plastic wrap or store them in an airtight container for up to 3 days on your kitchen counter (if it lasts that long)!- Counter and Fridge: Banana bread lasts up to 3 days at room temperature or 5 days in the refrigerator.
- Freezer: To freeze it, wrap the loaf in foil or store it in a large airtight container in the freezer. You can also slice it up and freeze it in single-sized portions.
- Reheating: When the craving hits, reheat a slice in the microwave for about 20 to 30 seconds, or let it thaw on your kitchen counter first thing in the morning.
- Make Ahead: You can bake the loaf a day early and keep it wrapped tightly on the counter overnight, as the banana flavor gets even better by the next day.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
